I don't think that Steve Wozniak has access to festival finances but it is not rocket science to look at the infrastructure of the Bulverton site and see that it must cost a lot to put together. If the festival is losing money then you must look at the cost-effectiveness of your venues. However, as has been pointed out, the non-financial value of a venue to the festival must also be considered. This is why I raised the issue so that it could be debated.

With regards to the negative nature of the thread, it is human nature to point out the things that were felt to be wrong so that hopefully they can be improved. It is much harder to point the good things because they didn't make you grumpy!

I spent most of my time playing for Morris or doing the bar in the Blackmore dance tent so can't comment too much on the bulk of the festival program and other venues.

However, on the positive side, I liked the extra lights and no fencing at the campsite. I also thought that the toilets on site were always clean, well stocked and a pleasure to use. Didn't like being woken by the sh*t-sucker every morning though!

Food at Chez Nous on the Ham was excellent - maybe there could be some other sellers for variety but on past experience they tend to be expensive and have small portions. One I would recommend would be Leon's Veggie Food which I tried at the Big Session. And what happened to the Jerk Chicken & Goat Curry man at Warwick?

The Esplanade was much better now that the sellers are controlled. The buskers were also more helpful in that they had a timetabled rota that allowed for the market square displays to happen without too much friction. The massed ranks of morris dancers on the Sunday were good but there just isn't enough room - how about getting the road closed from the Bedford to the Ham for 2-3 hours?

The dance bands in the Blackmore were good throughout the week. The bar was also great but then I am biased. The bands at the Bulverton were not so good and there were several I positively didn't like (and I could hear them in my tent even though I wasn't at LNE).

Hope that lot is more positive!

Cheers, Richard